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2000 BMW Z3 2.3 seats wont go up or down? (fixed! )
Ok so new to this car, the electric seat adjusters both move forward and back, and the manual seat lever to lean back works, however when i move the button to the up or down position, the seat doesn't do anything. I hear a noise like a motor is trying something, but nothing happens. Issue is on both passenger and driver seats.
are these seats supposed to go up and down as well, or is that something else like a lumbar support or something?
I tried the search option, but didn't find much.
- - - Updated - - -
Sorry finally found it! Nevermind! https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...ove-up-or-down
Last edited by blueline1226; 11-23-2017 at 03:59 PM.
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Sounds like jammed. Probably need to remove the seats to find the issue. WD40 maybe helps?Originally Posted by blueline1226
Member
Yep, it's exactly what I hoped it was, just jammed at the end, I took the seat out, saw that the motor was indeed trying to spin the screw but wouldn't budget. Took off the bolt that holds the linkage to the screw end (not the motor end, its a bolt that sandwiches the linkage, its towards the rear end of the seat) and put some heavy duty DW40 in there and let it soak. You can pull it away from the seat about an inch just to clear where it bolts in, after about a minute I use all my strength and by hand twisted it and it broke free. I then wiped off the DW40 as much as possible, then added some white lithium grease to both ends of the screw and a ton at the spot where it jams. Drove it back up and down the screw to both extreme ends and worked like a charm. Put it all back together and now I can sit like a normal person in the car!
Tomorrow I'll do the passenger seat as well. Happy thanksgiving!
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I'd also like to add a side note, to others that have this problem, although it may seem as just an annoyance to you, its actually a HUGE safety issue. I'm 5'10" and my head was already clearing the roll bar protection. If the car were to tip, my head would be the first thing to hit the ground and I'd be dead.
It also helped fix another problem, the seatbelt would always have problems retracting. Because the seat is so raised up, the break angle wouldn't allow the seatbelt to properly retract back. Another safety issue.
So please guys if you do have this problem and its stuck all the way up and notice you have your head above the roll bars and your seatbelt isn't pulling in properly, this simple 30min fix will solve these other issues and make it much safer to drive. Also I did NOT unhook the power wires under the seat, I put the top down on the car and lifted the seat up and leaned it out of the card on its side. I put a large tool box to hold the seat so it was on its side, giving just enough slack in the power cables.
This allowed me to work under the seat just fine. I'll post pictures for when I do the passenger seat to help others.
Last edited by blueline1226; 11-23-2017 at 03:57 PM.
Member
Even if your head was under the bar, when the car tips, you will be hanging in the seat belt. I would take a racing 5-point belt to save you. At over 6 feet, there is no hope for me. Especially since my car has no bars.
BMW MOA 696, BMW CCA 1405
Top-Hoist
On my Z3s the driver's side goes up and down, but the passenger side doesn't have that option. Only forward/rearward.
Member
Interesting, does the button not move at all? If so thats odd, but at least they gave the driver the option!
I gotta say, driving the car with the proper seat height just makes me love it even more. Its a ton more comfortable now. If the motor is shot on someones, it seems like you might actually have to disconnect all the wires to really get your hands in there. Also its pretty easy to get your hand under there when its all the way up to apply grease, so maintaining it shall be easy.
Member
Then it's time to fix that finally
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